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.Volume  VI. 
Number  2. 


PHILADELPHIA,  FEBRUARY,  1915. 


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Tib®  unai  Migtarj  Sdimdly 

BY  W.  DAWSON  JOHNSTON,  ST.  PAUL  PUBLIC  LIBRARY. 


A report  of  the  Committee  of  Review  of  the  Col- 
lege Entrance  Examination  Board,  lately  made  pub- 
lic, says  that  examinations  in  history  set  by  the  Board 
showed  the  largest  percentage  of  failures  of  any  set 
by  that  body,  and  that  a reconsideration  of  the  his- 
tory requirements  must  soon  be  undertaken  if  a 
higher  percentage  of  pass  marks  is  not  forthcoming. 
Professor  MacDonald  of  Brown  University,  in  a 
paper  in  “ Education  ” for  June,  entitled,  “ College 
Entrance  Requirements  in  History,”  agrees  with 
those  making  the  report,  and  feels  that,  perhaps,  too 
much  emphasis  has  been  laid  on  collateral  reading. 
Professor  Sioussat,  in  the  PIistory  Teacher’s  Maga- 
zine for  September,  takes  issue  with  him.  He  does 
not  think  that  too  much  emphasis  has  been  laid  on 
collateral  reading,  but  fails  to  offer  any  other  satis- 
factory explanation  of  existing  conditions.  In  fact, 
both  Professor  MacDonald  and  he  seem  to  incline  to 
the  view  that  it  is  the  lack  of  equipment  of  the  teach- 
ers, which  is  chiefly,  if  not  solely,  responsible  for  the 
failure  of  historical  teaching.  In  a sense,  this  is 
true,  but  it  is,  I am  certain,  equally  true  that  the 
equipment  of  the  history  teachers  is  not  inferior  to 
that  of  other  teachers,  and  that  the  failure  of  the 
students  to  pass  these  examinations  shows  the  in- 
adequacy of  the  examinations  as  much  as  it  does  the 
inadequacy  of  teaching.  In  other  words,  the  stand- 
ards of  the  College  Entrance  Examination  Board  are 
no  longer  the  standards  of  the  majority  of  history 
teachers.  At  the  same  time,  one  who  is  much  inter- 
ested in  the  advancement  of  historical  teaching  can- 
not but  admit  that  we  are  far  from  having  a clear 
idea  of  the  aims  or  methods  of  historical  teaching, 
and  in  particular,  very  far  indeed  from  having  a clear 
idea  of  what  collateral  reading  should  be  required 
and  how  library  resources  may  be  organized  in  order 
to  get  it  done  most  effectively.  Yet  collateral  read- 
ing and  library  research  constitute  the  main  differ- 
ence betwen  the  old  and  the  new  methods  of  historical 
teaching. 


Recommendations  of  Committee  of  Seven. 

After  the  publication  of  the  report  of  the  Commit- 
tee of  Seven  of  the  American  Historical  Association 
on  the  study  of  history  in  schools  in  1898,  the  text- 
book method  of  instruction  in  history  was  definitely 
abandoned  and  the  laboratory  method  adopted.  Boys 
and  girls,  it  was  said,  do  not  remember  one-tenth  of 
one  per  cent,  of  all  the  facts  they  are  asked  to  learn 
in  history  courses,  and  the  most  radical  were  bold 
enough  to  say  that  the  facts  would  be  of  no  use  to 
them  even  if  they  could  remember  them.  There 
seemed  to  be  general  agreement  among  the  leaders  of 
opinion  that  history  could  keep  its  place  in  the  cur- 
riculum only  as  a disciplinary  study,  and  that  in 
teaching,  emphasis  should  be  laid  upon  historical 
method  rather  than  upon  historical  fact. 

At  the  same  time,  however,  little  organized  effort 
was  made  to  adapt  methods  of  teaching  to  the  new 
ideal,  and  little  effort  made  to  equip  historical 
laboratories.  The  Committee  of  Seven  said  that  the 
library  should  be  the  center  and  soul  of  all  study  in 
history  and  literature,  and  that  no  vital  work  could 
be  carried  on  without  books  to  which  pupils  might 
have  ready  and  constant  access.  “ History  more 
than  any  other  subject  in  the  secondary  curriculum,” 
they  declared,  “ demands  for  effective  work  a 
library  and  the  ability  to  use  it.” 

The  committee  observed  that  few  schools  require 
as  many  as  300  pages  of  collateral  reading  a year, 
and  that  three-fourths  of  them  had  no  specified  re- 
quirements whatever,  but  it  made  no  effort  to  indi- 
cate what  the  minimum  of  collateral  reading  should 
be. 

The  committee  described  library  conditions  as 
equally  unsatisfactory.  Practically  every  school  it 
said,  recognizes  that  a library  is  necessary,  and  has 
a few  books  more  or  less  wisely  chosen  and  more  or 
less  antiquated,  but  it  is  still  easier  to  get  five 
thousand  dollars  for  physical  and  chemical  labora- 
tories than  five  hundred  dollars  for  reference  books. 


As  a consequence,  few  schools  have  good  collections 
of  even  the  standard  secondary  writers,  and  even 
schools  with  considerable  libraries  seem  unable  to  add 
the  new  books  of  importance.  Yet  in  full  view  of 
these  facts,  the  committee  merely  recommended  the 
establishment  of  a library  in  each  school  and  the  dis- 
play of  its  book  collections  on  open  shelves. 

In  the  third  place,  it  recognized  the  value  of  in- 
struction in  historical  method  in  general  and  in 
bibliographical  method  in  particular,  and  gave  ex- 
pression to  their  feeling  in  a few  benevolent  plati- 
tudes to  the  effect  that  teachers  should  develop  the 
power  of  using  books  gradually  but  systematically. 
In  the  earlier  years  teachers  should  read  to  the  class 
passages  from  entertaining  histories.  In  later  years 
pupils  should  do  their  own  reading,  and  to  some  ex- 
tent find  their  own  reading.  “ Let  the  pupil  learn 
how  to  understand  and  use  pages,”  they  said,  “ be- 
fore he  uses  books,  and  let  him  learn  how  to  use  one 
or  two  books  before  he  is  set  to  rummaging  in  a 
library.”  In  other  words,  they  observed,  teach  pupils 
how  to  use  intelligently  tables  of  contents  and  in- 
dexes, and  also  how  to  turn  to  account  library  cata- 
logues and  indexes  to  general  and  periodical  litera- 
ture. But  beyond  making  these  rather  sophomoric 
recommendations  they  did  nothing  either  to  sys- 
tematize bibliograjohical  instruction  or  indicate  what 
should  be  the  minimum  of  requirements  in  this  direc- 
tion. Pupils  were  still  left  to  rummage  in  the  library. 

Later,  the  Committee  of  Five  on  the  study  of  his- 
tory in  secondary  schools,  appointed  in  1907,  in- 
cluded in  its  investigation  an  inquiry  upon  school 
equipment  for  teaching  history.  But  its  report  pub- 
lished in  1911  contained  no  definite  information  with 
regard  to  conditions,  and  no  comment  upon  condi- 
tions beyond  the  vague  statement  that  the  equipment 
for  the  teaching  of  history  in  most  schools  was  quite 
inadequate. 

Again  the  Committee  of  Eight  on  the  study  of  his- 
tory in  elementary  schools,  in  their  inquiry  asked  to 
what  extent  is  supplementary  material  introduced, 
but  only  reported  that  it  appeared  to  be  difficult  to 
secure  sufficient  appropriations  for  the  purchase  of 
this  material,  adding  the  somewhat  academic  observa- 
tion that  the  public  library  under  the  control  of  the 
school  board  does  at  times  render  effective  co-opera- 
tive service. 

Indeed  it  was  left  for  a committee  of  the  Coun- 
cil of  Teachers  of  English  to  outline  the  problem 
created  by  the  new  conditions  of  history  teaching,  and 
throw  some  light  upon  possible  methods  of  solving 
the  problem.  This  committee  found  that  the  equip- 
ment cost  per  pupil  in  history,  as  well  as  in  English, 
was  very  much  less  than  for  any  other  subject  which 
requires  extensive  equipment.  To  be  exact,  it  found 


that  the  history  equipment  cost  per  pupil  in  60  schools 
reporting  was  $2.39,  and  that  the  average  annual  in- 
crease per  pupil  was  22  cents.  These  facts,  it  seems 
to  me,  indicate  more  clearly  than  any  report  made  by 
historians  that  the  subject  of  historical  equipment 
should  receive  more  serious  consideration. 

Side  by  side  with  these  facts  may  be  placed  those 
given  in  the  report  of  the  United  States  Commis- 
sioner of  Education  for  1910  regarding  the  number 
of  students  of  history  in  secondary  schools  in  this 
country.  In  that  report,  he  said  that  in  8,097 
schools  there  were  406,784  students  of  history;  in 
other  words,  55  per  cent,  of  all  pupils  in  secondary 
schools.  That  means  that  in  St.  Paul,  for  example, 
there  are  in  the  public  high  schools  alone  about  1,670 
students  of  history.  The  effective  direction  of  the 
reading  of  this  great  body  of  students  constitutes  a 
problem  which  is  of  interest  not  only  to  the  teacher, 
but  also  to  the  librarian. 

It  is  not  possible  on  this  occasion  to  do  more  than 
outline  the  problem  as  it  presents  itself  to  a librarian, 
but  even  an  outline  may  be  useful  as  far  as  it  goes. 
In  the  first  place,  I may  say,  the  librarian  as  such  is 
not  interested  in  the  aims  and  methods  of  historical 
teaching,  except  in  as  far  as  these  make  it  necessary 
for  him  to  provide  the  material  required  by  teacher 
and  pupil,  and  provide  what  is  wanted,  when  it  is 
wanted  and  where  it  is  wanted. 

It  may  be  desirable  to  determine  the  minimum 
amount  of  reading  which  should  be  required  in  gen- 
eral, but  whether  it  is  or  not,  it  is  desirable  that  in 
each  school  the  amount  of  time  which  can  and  should 
be  given  to  reading  in  each  subject  should  be  deter- 
mined, the  required  and  recommended  reading  listed, 
and  both  pupil  and  librarian  advised  not  only  as  to 
what  is  to  be  required  and  what  recommended,  but 
also  as  to  when  the  required  reading  is  to  be  done, 
and  how  many  are  expected  to  do  it. 

Library  Organization. 

In  determining  what  books  should  be  provided  at 
any  point,  the  number  of  copies  of  each  which  should 
be  provided,  and  the  number  of  seats  for  readers,  it 
is  necessary  to  know  not  only  what  number  of  pupils 
are  expected  to  use  the  books,  and  how  much  time  is 
allowed  for  the  reading,  but  also  where  the  reading 
can  be  done  most  effectively  and  most  easily.  In 
other  words,  it  is  necessary  to  decide  which  books 
should  be  placed  in  the  class  room,  either  per- 
manently or  temporarily,  which  in  the  school  library 
either  on  reserved  shelves  or  on  open  shelves,  and 
which  may  be  left  to  the  public  library  to  supply  from 
its  own  shelves,  either  for  reference  use  or  for  home 
reading. 

And  here,  again,  we  must  be  influenced  in  a large 


9 Je  i t- 


measure  by  the  grade  of  pupil.  The  younger  pupil 
must  do  most  of  his  work  in  the  class  and  in  the  class- 
room, but  the  more  mature  student  will  do  the  better 
part  of  his  work  in  the  school  library  and  in  the  pub- 
lic library,  and  should  receive  as  much,  if  not  more, 
credit  for  work  of  this  kind  than  for  attendance  at 
recitations. 

We  must  be  influenced  also  by  considerations  of 
economy.  The  class-room  library  cannot  be  made  a 
substitute  for  the  school  library,  and  should  not  be, 
nor  can  the  school  library  be  made  a substitute  for 
the  public  library.  For  this  reason  a measure  of  cen- 
tralization of  library  administration  is  desirable. 
Without  it  the  teacher  with  the  loudest  voice  is  likely 
to  have  the  advantage  in  the  distribution  of  funds  for 
equipment,  books  are  likely  to  remain  in  a school  or 
class-room  after  the  use  for  them  has  passed,  and  the 
greatest  needs  of  the  school  in  respect  to  library 
equipment  are  apt  to  be  slighted. 


Duplication  of  Books. 


At  the  same  time,  it  is  essential  that  the  books  in 
common  use  be  duplicated  in  large  numbers,  espe- 
cially in  the  elementary  courses  and  in  required  read- 
ing. In  the  field  of  general  history  much  has  been 
done  to  improve  conditions,  and  incidentally  relieve 
the  pressure  upon  libraries  by  the  publication  of  col- 
lections of  illustrative  material  from  original  and 
other  sources.  In  the  field  of  local  history,  too, 
something  has  been  done.  The  Rhode  Island  De- 
partment of  Education,  for  example,  published  among 
its  “ Rhode  Island  educational  circulars  ” an  histori- 
cal series  relating  to  local  history,  and  intended  pri- 
marily for  use  in  schools.  And  the  Minneapolis 
Public  Library  publishes  a series  of  mimeographed 
sheets  relating  to  Minneapolis  and  vicinity  for  the 
same  purpose.  Much  more  may  be  done  by  commer- 
cial publishers,  by  school  departments,  by  historical 
societies,  by  libraries  and  by  local  newspapers  to 
facilitate  the  documentation  of  elementary  historical 


research. 


Use  of  Syllabi. 


If  duplication  of  copies  of  books,  or  of  etxracts 
from  books  is  the  one  thing  useful  in  the  successful 
organization  of  required  reading,  a syllabus  is  the 
thing  most  needed  in  the  direction  of  recommended 
reading.  At  present  it  is  customary  at  the  expense 
of  the  time  of  teacher  or  pupil  to  write  this  outline 
on  the  blackboard  and  ask  pupils  to  copy  it,  or  to 
dictate  it  to  the  class.  In  either  case,  the  biblio- 
graphical references  are  ordinarily  incomplete  or  in- 
accurate, or  if  they  are  not,  they  are  rendered  incom- 
plete and  inaccurate  by  the  copyist.  The  result  is 
not  bibliographical  guidance,  but  a series  of  biblio- 
graphical puzzles.  The  only  remedy  for  this  condi- 
tion of  affairs  is  the  preparation  of  syllabi.  These 
must  be  compiled  by  the  teacher,  but  in  their  com- 


Y 

pilation  the  teacher  should  receive  the  assistance  of 
the  librarian,  and  if  the  school  cannot  print  or  mimeo- 
graph them,  the  library  must. 

Bibliographical  Instruction. 

By  means  of  required  reading  and  by  means  of  a 
course  of  recommended  reading,  it  is  possible  to  con- 
duct a student  far  on  the  road  to  historical  learning, 
but  it  is  not  possible  to  give  him  even  an  elementary 
knowledge  of  historical  science  and  method,  it  is  not 
possible  to  make  him  an  independent  student  or  give 
him  the  freedom  of  the  library  without  systematic 
bibliographical  instruction.  Whether  this  instruc- 
tion be  given  by  the  teacher  of  history  or  by  the 
librarian,  or  by  both,  is  immaterial,  provided  the  in- 
struction be  good.  For  my  own  part,  I feel  that  gen- 
eral bibliographical  instruction  should  be  given  by  the 
librarian  and  special  instruction  by  the  specialist, 
that  the  teacher  of  the  more  advanced  courses  in  his- 
tory should  require  a certain  degree  of  bibliographical 
skill,  should  assign  exercises  intended  to  develop  such 
skill,  and  include  in  examination  papers  questions 
which  will  determine  what  progress  has  been  made. 
Bibliographies  and  answers  to  bibliographical  ques- 
tions may  very  well  be  turned  over  to  the  librarian 
for  examination  and  grading. 

Survey  of  Existing  Conditions. 

I do  not  know  whether  the  Survey  Committee  has 
included  in  its  plans  provisions  for  an  inquiry  into 
the  requirements  regarding  collateral  reading,  the  ex- 
tent of  library  collections,  their  organization  and  ad- 
ministration, the  amount  and  character  of  biblio- 
graphical instruction.  If  it  has  not,  I hope  that  it 
will  do  so.  Information  with  regard  to  present  con- 
ditions is  the  first  step  toward  improving  them.  We 
need  to  know  not  only  how  large  our  library  collec- 
tions are  in  general,  but  also  what  proportion  of  the 
collections  relate  to  history,  and  how  many  volumes 
are  added  annually.  We  need  to  know  whether  the 
pupils  in  our  history  classes  are  registered  borrowers 
from  the  library,  and  how  much  time  they  spend  in 
library  work.  We  need  to  know  how  much  the  books 
recommended  for  reading  are  actually  read.  A State 
survey  along  these  lines  may,  I believe,  accomplish 
almost  as  much  as  a national  survey  toward  defining 
this  problem  and  toward  indicating  how  it  may  be 
solved.  The  time  is  past  when  teachers  should  de- 
pend upon  pupils  for  information  as  to  the  sources 
of  the  library  and  its  administration ; teachers  of 
every  subject,  and  especially  teachers  of  history, 
should  have  first-hand  information  upon  this  subject, 
and  not  only  with  regard  to  local  conditions,  but  with 
regard  to  conditions  in  other  communities  which  are 
superior  to  those  at  home.  1 

i Read  at  the  meeting  of  the  Minnesota  Educational  As- 
sociation, St.  Paul,  October  23,  1914. 


